LA County Expanding Outreach Efforts To Communities Hard-Hit By COVID-19
SUN VALLEY (CBSLA) — The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said Monday that there was an alarming surge in COVID-19 cases in more than a dozen communities within the county.
Pacoima topped the list of most impacted with an adjusted two-week case rate of 506 per 100,000 residents, Sun Valley had a reported case rate of 456 per 100,000 residents and Palmdale had a reported case rate of 406 — all more than double the countywide reported case rate of 188 per 100,000 residents.
Dr. Barbara Ferrer, public county health director, said the department was mobilizing health workers who will reach out to residents and business owners to help them stem the tide.
"Some of the things that our community health workers are able to do includes sharing basic information about COVID-19 — including how it's spread, what to do ff you are diagnosed and how to keep your friends family and community safe," she said.
RELATED: LA County Reports 2,318 New COVID-19 Cases, 25 Deaths
The department has trained more than 100 additional health staff to engage the county's hardest hit communities where some residents said they were not surprised by the sharp increases.
"Walmart, for one, I mean, it's chaotic all the time," Martina Beltran, a preschool administrator, said. "I mean, I keep my distance, but it's really hard, especially if you are trying and other people are not, you know? You always have to say excuse me, but even when you want to say, 'Please keep 6 feet,' people do get upset."
"Some people do, and some people don't, and that's the problem," Charles Collishaw, a contractor, said. "People, they don't follow what they should.
"I do think that people need to do the safe things," he continued. "I also think we need to reopen the country, as well. We can't be under a rock for the rest of our lives."
Community outreach health workers will be deployed to the most impacted communities in the coming weeks, according to the health department.
